and to respect them instead of tampering with them in a fashion that mimics foreigners or the pampered and effeminate. They will also undermine the creed of pure monotheism by adopting polytheistic means—wearing strings themselves or putting them on their animals to ward off harm—and they will do what their Prophet forbade: using animal dung and bones for istinjāʾ. Hence the Prophet ﷺ instructed his Companion to inform the community that their Prophet disowns anyone who commits any of these acts.

Relevance of the ḥadith to this chapter: it forbids hanging strings to avert calamities and declares such practice an act of shirk, for only Allah can repel harm.

Lessons derived from the ḥadith:

1. A sign of Prophethood, for Ruwayfiʿ lived on until 56 AH.
2. The duty to inform people of what they have been commanded to do and what they have been forbidden to do.
3. The legitimacy of honoring the beard and letting it grow, and the prohibition of tampering with it—by shaving, cutting, knotting, curling, or the like.
4. The prohibition of wearing a necklace to ward off harm, as it constitutes shirk.
5. The prohibition of performing istinjāʾ with dung or bones.
6. The acts mentioned are major sins.
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